In approaching the study of this remarkable section of our book, the
reader must bear in mind that it is by no means to be confounded with
chapter xxvii. Some expositors, in seeking to account for the absence
of the blessings in the latter, have sought for them here; but it is a
grand mistake--a mistake absolutely fatal to the proper understanding
of either chapter. The obvious fact is, the two chapters are wholly
distinct, in basis, scope, and practical application. Chapter xxvii.
is (to put it as pointedly and briefly as possible) _moral_ and
_personal_; chapter xxviii. is _dispensational_ and _national_. That
deals with the great root-principle of man's moral condition as a
sinner, utterly ruined and wholly incapable of meeting God on the
ground of law; this, on the other hand, takes up the question of
Israel as a nation, under the government of God. In short, a careful
comparison of the two chapters will enable the reader to see their
entire distinctness. For instance, what connection can we trace
between the six blessings of our chapter and the twelve curses of
chapter xxvii? None whatever. It is not possible to establish the
slightest relationship. But a child can see the moral link between the
blessings and curses of chapter xxviii.
Let us quote a passage or two in proof. "And it shall come to pass, if
thou shalt _hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy
God_,"--the grand old Deuteronomic motto, the key-note of the
book--"to observe and to do all His commandments which I command thee
this day, that the Lord thy God will set thee on high above all
nations of the earth; and all these blessings shall come on thee, and
overtake thee, _if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy
God_"--the only safeguard, the true secret of happiness, security,
victory, and strength.--"Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and
blessed shalt thou be in the field. Blessed shall be the fruit of thy
body, and the fruit of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, the
increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep. Blessed shall be
thy basket and thy store. Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in,
and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out."
Is it not perfectly plain to the reader that these are not the
blessings pronounced by the six tribes on Mount Gerizim? What is here
presented to us is Israel's national dignity, prosperity, and glory,
founded upon their diligent attention to all the commandments set
before them in this book. It was the eternal purpose of God that
Israel should be pre-eminent on the earth, high above all the
nations. This purpose shall assuredly be made good, although Israel,
in the past, have shamefully failed to render that perfect obedience
which was to form the basis of their national pre-eminence and glory.
We must never forget or surrender this great truth. Some expositors
have adopted a system of interpretation by which the covenant-blessings
of Israel are spiritualized and made over to the Church of God. This
is a most fatal mistake. Indeed, it is hardly possible to set forth in
language, or even to conceive, the pernicious effects of such a method
of handling the precious Word of God. Nothing is more certain than
that it is diametrically opposed to the mind and will of God. He will
not and cannot sanction such tampering with His truth, or such an
unwarrantable alienation of the blessings and privileges of His people
Israel.
True, we read, in Galatians iii, "That the blessing of Abraham might
come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ, that we might
receive"--what? Blessings in the city and in the field? blessings in
our basket and store? Nay; but "the promise of the Spirit through
faith." So also we learn from the same epistle, in chapter iv, that
restored Israel will be permitted to reckon amongst her children all
those who are born of the Spirit during the Christian period. "But
Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all. For
it is written, 'Rejoice, thou barren, that bearest not; break forth
and cry, thou that travailest not; for the desolate hath many more
children than she which hath a husband.'"
All this is blessedly true, but it affords no warrant whatever for
transferring the promises made to Israel to New-Testament believers.
God has pledged Himself by an oath to bless the seed of Abraham His
friend--to bless them with all earthly blessings, in the land of
Canaan. This promise holds good, and is absolutely inalienable. Woe be
to all who attempt to interfere with its literal fulfillment in God's
own time. We have referred to this in our studies on the earlier part
of this book, and must now rest content with warning the reader most
solemnly against every system of interpretation which involves such
serious consequences as to the Word and ways of God. We must ever
remember that Israel's blessings are earthly; the Church's blessings
are heavenly. "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who hath blessed us with _all spiritual blessings in the heavenlies in
Christ_."
Thus, both the nature and the sphere of the Church's blessings are
wholly different from those of Israel, and must never be confounded.
But the system of interpretation above referred to does confound them,
to the marring of the integrity of holy Scripture, and the serious
damage of souls. To attempt to apply the promises made to Israel to
the Church of God, either now or hereafter, on earth or in heaven, is
to turn things completely upside down, and to produce the most
hopeless confusion in the exposition and application of Scripture. We
feel called upon, in simple faithfulness to the Word of God and to
the soul of the reader, to press this matter upon his earnest
attention. He may rest assured it is by no means an unimportant
question; so far from this, we are persuaded that it is utterly
impossible for any one who confounds Israel and the Church--the
earthly and the heavenly, to be a sound or accurate interpreter of the
Word of God.
However, we cannot pursue this subject further here. We only trust
that the Spirit of God will arouse the heart of the reader to feel its
interest and importance, and give him to see the necessity of rightly
dividing the word of truth. If this be so, our object will be fully
gained.
With regard to this twenty-eighth of Deuteronomy, if the reader only
seizes the fact of its entire distinctness from its predecessor, he
will be able to read it with spiritual intelligence and real profit.
There is no need whatever for elaborate exposition. It divides itself
naturally and obviously into two parts. In the first, we have a full
and most blessed statement of the results of obedience (See verses
1-15.); in the second, we have a deeply solemn and affecting statement
of the awful consequences of disobedience. (See verses 16-68.) And we
cannot but be struck with the fact that the section containing the
curses is more than three times the length of the one containing the
blessings. That consists of fifteen verses; this, of fifty-three. The
whole chapter furnishes an impressive commentary on the government of
God, and a most forcible illustration of the fact that "our God is a
consuming fire." All the nations of the earth may learn from Israel's
marvelous history that God must punish disobedience, and that, too,
first of all, in His own. And if He has not spared His own people,
what shall be the end of those who know Him not? "The wicked shall be
turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God." "It is a
fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God." It is the
very height of extravagant folly for any one to attempt to evade the
full force of such passages, or to explain them away. It cannot be
done. Let any one read the chapter before us and compare it with the
actual history of Israel, and he will see that as sure as there is a
God on the throne of the majesty in the heavens, so surely will He
punish evil-doers, both here and hereafter. It cannot be otherwise.
The government that could or would allow evil to go unjudged,
uncondemned, unpunished, would not be a perfect government--would not
be the government of God. It is vain to found arguments upon one-sided
views of the goodness, kindness, and mercy of God. Blessed be His
name, He is kind and good and merciful and gracious, long-suffering
and full of compassion; but He is holy and just, righteous and true,
and "He hath appointed a day, in the which He will judge the world
[the habitable earth--οἰκουμενην] in righteousness by that
Man whom He hath ordained; whereof He hath given assurance [given
proof--πίστιν] unto all, in that He hath raised Him from the
dead." (Acts xvii.)
However, we must draw this section to a close; but ere doing so, we
feel it to be our duty to call the reader's attention to a very
interesting point in connection with verse 13 of our chapter. "The
Lord shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be
above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if that thou hearken unto
the commandments of the Lord thy God, which I command thee this day,
to observe and to do them."
This, no doubt, refers to Israel as a nation. They are destined to be
the head of all the nations of the earth. Such is the sure and settled
purpose and counsel of God respecting them. Low as they are now sunk,
scattered and lost amongst the nations, suffering the terrible
consequences of their persistent disobedience, sleeping, as we read in
Daniel xii, in the dust of the earth, yet they shall, _as a nation_,
arise and shine in far brighter glory than that of Solomon.
All this is blessedly true, and established beyond all question in
manifold passages in Moses, the Psalms, the prophets, and the New
Testament; but in looking through the history of Israel, we find some
very striking instances of individuals who were permitted and enabled,
through infinite grace, to make their own of the precious promise
contained in verse 13, and that, too, in very dark and depressing
periods of the national history, when Israel, as a nation, was the
tail and not the head. We shall just give the reader an instance or
two, not only to illustrate our point, but also to set before him a
principle of immense practical importance and universal application.
Let us turn for a moment to that charming little book of Esther--a
book so little understood or appreciated--a book which, we may truly
say, fills a niche and teaches a lesson which no other book does. It
belongs to a period when most assuredly Israel was not the head, but
the tail; but, notwithstanding, it presents to our view the very
edifying and encouraging picture of an individual son of Abraham so
carrying himself as to reach the very highest position, and gaining a
splendid victory over Israel's bitterest foe.
As to Israel's condition in the days of Esther, it was such that God
could not publicly own them. Hence it is that His name is not found in
this book, from beginning to end. The Gentile was the head and Israel
the tail. The relationship between Jehovah and Israel could no longer
be publicly owned; but the heart of Jehovah could never forget His
people, and, we may add, the heart of a faithful Israelite could never
forget Jehovah or His holy law; and these are just the two facts that
specially characterize this most interesting little book. God was
acting for Israel behind the scenes, and Mordecai was acting for God
before the scenes. It is worthy of remark that neither Israel's best
Friend nor their worst enemy is once named in the book of Esther, and
yet the whole book is full of the actings of both. The finger of God
is stamped on every link in the marvelous chain of providence; and on
the other hand, the bitter enmity of Amalek comes out in the cruel
plot of the haughty Agagite.
All this is intensely interesting. Indeed, in rising from the study of
this book, we may well say, "Oh, scenes surpassing fable and yet
true." No romance could possibly exceed in interest this simple but
most blessed history. But we must not expatiate, much as we should
like to do so. Time and space forbid. We merely refer to it now in
order to point out to the reader the unspeakable value and importance
of individual faithfulness at a moment when the national glory was
faded and gone. Mordecai stood like a rock for the truth of God. He
refused, with stern decision, to own Amalek. He would save the life of
Ahasuerus, and bow to his authority as the expression of the power of
God; but he would not bow to Haman. His conduct in this matter was
governed simply by the Word of God. The authority for his course was
to be found in this blessed book of Deuteronomy.--"_Remember_ what
Amalek did unto thee by the way, when ye were come forth out of Egypt;
how he met thee by the way, and smote the hindmost of thee, even all
that were feeble behind thee, when thou wast faint and weary; and _he
feared not God_"--here was the true secret of the whole
matter--"therefore it shall be, when the Lord thy God hath given thee
rest from all thine enemies round about, in the land which the Lord
thy God giveth for an inheritance to possess it, that thou shalt blot
out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven; _thou shalt not
forget it_." (Chap. xxv. 17-19.)
This was distinct enough for every circumcised ear, every obedient
heart, every upright conscience. Equally distinct is the language of
Exodus xvii.--"And the Lord said unto Moses, 'Write this for a
memorial in a book, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua; for I will
utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven.' And
Moses built an altar, and called the name of it JEHOVAH-nissi [the
Lord my banner]; for he said, 'Because the Lord hath sworn that the
Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.'" (Ver.
14-16.)
Here, then, was Mordecai's authority for refusing a single nod of his
head to the Agagite. How could a faithful member of the house of
Israel bow to a member of a house with which Jehovah was at war?
Impossible. He could clothe himself in sackcloth, fast and weep for
his people, but he could not, he would not, he dare not, bow to an
Amalekite. He might be charged with presumption, blind obstinacy,
stupid bigotry, and contemptible narrow-mindedness; but with that he
had nothing whatever to do. It might seem the most unaccountable folly
to withhold the common mark of respect from the highest noble in the
kingdom; but that noble was an Amalekite, and that was enough for
Mordecai. The apparent folly was simple obedience.
It is this which makes the case so interesting and important for us.
Nothing can ever do away with our responsibility to obey the Word of
God. It might be said to Mordecai that the commandment as to Amalek
was a by-gone thing, having reference to Israel's palmy days. It was
quite right for Joshua to fight with Amalek; Saul, too, ought to have
obeyed the word of Jehovah instead of sparing Agag; but now, all was
changed; the glory was departed from Israel, and it was perfectly
useless to attempt to act on Exodus xvii. or Deuteronomy xxv.
All such arguments, we feel assured, would have no weight whatever
with Mordecai. It was enough for him that Jehovah had said,
"_Remember_ what Amalek did.... _Thou shalt not forget it_." How long
was this to hold good? "From generation to generation." Jehovah's war
with Amalek was never to cease until his very name and remembrance
were blotted out from under heaven. And why? Because of his cruel and
heartless treatment of Israel. Such was the kindness of God toward His
people! How, then, could a faithful Israelite ever bow to an
Amalekite? Impossible. Could Joshua bow to Amalek? Nay. Did Samuel?
Nay; "he hewed Agag in pieces before the Lord in Gilgal." How, then,
could Mordecai bow to him? He could not do it, cost what it might. It
mattered not to him that the gallows was erected for him. He could be
hanged, but he could never do homage to Amalek.
And what was the result? A magnificent triumph! There stood the proud
Amalekite near the throne, basking in the sunshine of royal favor,
boasting himself in his riches, his greatness, his glory, and about to
crush beneath his foot the seed of Abraham. There, on the other hand,
lay poor Mordecai in sackcloth and ashes and tears. What could he do?
He could obey. He had neither sword nor spear; but he had the Word of
God, and by simply obeying that Word, he gained a victory over Amalek
quite as decisive and splendid in its way as that gained by Joshua in
Exodus xvii.--a victory which Saul failed to gain, though surrounded
by a host of warriors selected from the twelve tribes of Israel.
Amalek sought to get Mordecai hanged; but instead of that, he was
obliged to act as his footman, and conduct him, in all but regal pomp
and splendor, through the street of the city. "And Haman answered the
king, 'For the man whom the king delighteth to honor, let the royal
apparel be brought which the king useth to wear, and the horse that
the king rideth upon, and the crown royal which is set upon his head;
and let this apparel and horse be delivered to the hand of one of the
king's most noble princes, that they may array the man withal whom the
king delighteth to honor, and bring him on horseback through the
street of the city, and proclaim before him, Thus shall it be done to
the man whom the king delighteth to honor.' Then the king said to
Haman, 'Make haste, and take the apparel and the horse, as thou hast
said, and do even so to Mordecai the Jew, that sitteth at the king's
gate: let nothing fail of all that thou hast spoken.' Then took Haman
the apparel and the horse, and arrayed Mordecai, and brought him on
horseback through the street of the city, and proclaimed before him,
'Thus shall it be done unto the man whom the king delighteth to
honor.' And Mordecai came again to the king's gate; but Haman hasted
to his house mourning, and having his head covered."
Here, assuredly, Israel was the head and Amalek the tail--Israel, not
nationally, but individually. But this was only the beginning of
Amalek's defeat and of Israel's glory. Haman was hanged on the very
gallows he had erected for Mordecai, "and Mordecai went out from the
presence of the king in royal apparel of blue and white, and with a
great crown of gold, and with a garment of fine linen and purple; and
the city of Shushan rejoiced and was glad."
Nor was this all. The effect of Mordecai's marvelous victory was felt
far and wide over the hundred and twenty-seven provinces of the
empire. "In every province, and in every city whithersoever the king's
commandment and his decree came, the Jews had joy and gladness, a
feast and a good day. And many people of the land became Jews, for the
fear of the Jews fell upon them." And, to crown all, we read that
"Mordecai the Jew was next unto king Ahasuerus, and great among the
Jews, and accepted of the multitude of his brethren, seeking the
wealth of his people, and speaking peace to all his seed."
Now, reader, does not all this prove to us, in the most striking
manner, the immense importance of individual faithfulness? Is it not
eminently calculated to encourage us to stand for the truth of God,
cost what it may? Only see what marvelous results followed from the
actings of one man! Many might have condemned Mordecai's conduct. It
might have seemed like unaccountable obstinacy to refuse a simple mark
of respect to the highest noble in the empire; but it was not so. It
was simple obedience; it was decision for God, and it led to a most
magnificent victory, the spoils of which were reaped by his brethren
at the very ends of the earth.
For further illustration of the subject suggested by Deuteronomy
xxviii. 13, we must refer the reader to Daniel iii. and vi. There he
will see what morally glorious results can be reached by individual
faithfulness to the true God, at a moment when Israel's national glory
was gone--their city and temple in ruins. The three worthies refused
to worship the golden image. They dared to face the wrath of the king,
to withstand the universal voice of the empire, yea, to meet the fiery
furnace itself, rather than disobey. They could surrender life, but
they could not surrender the truth of God.
And what was the result? A splendid victory! They walked through the
furnace with the Son of God, and were called forth from the furnace as
witnesses and servants of the Most High God. Glorious privilege!
wondrous dignity! and all the simple result of obedience. Had they
gone with the crowd, and bowed the head in worship to the national
god, in order to escape the dreadful furnace, see what they would have
lost! But, blessed be God, they were enabled to stand fast in the
confession of the grand foundation-truth of the unity of the
Godhead--that truth which had been trampled underfoot amid the
splendors of Solomon's reign; and the record of their faithfulness has
been penned for us by the Holy Spirit in order to encourage us to
tread, with firm step, the path of individual devotedness, in the face
of a God-hating, Christ-rejecting world, and in the face of a
truth-neglecting christendom. It is impossible to read the narrative
and not have our whole renewed being stirred up and drawn out in
earnest desire for more deep-toned personal devotedness to Christ and
His precious cause.
Similar must be the effect produced by the study of Daniel vi. We
cannot allow ourselves to quote or expatiate; we can only commend the
soul-stirring record to the attention of the reader. It is uncommonly
fine, and it furnishes a splendid lesson for this day of soft,
self-indulgent, easy-going profession, in which it costs people
nothing to give a nominal assent to the truths of Christianity; but in
which, notwithstanding, there is so little desire or readiness to
follow, with whole-hearted decision, a rejected Lord, or to yield an
unqualified and unhesitating obedience to His commandments.
How refreshing, in the face of so much heartless indifference, to read
of the faithfulness of Daniel! He, with unflinching decision,
persisted in his holy habit of praying three times a day, with his
window open toward Jerusalem, although he knew that the den of lions
was the penalty of his act. He might have closed his window and drawn
his curtains and retired into the privacy of his chamber to pray, or
he might have waited for the midnight hour, when no human eye could
see or human ear hear him. But no; this beloved servant of God would
not hide his light under a bed or a bushel. There was a great
principle at stake. It was not merely that he would pray to the one
living and true God, but he would pray with "_his windows open toward
Jerusalem_." And why "toward Jerusalem"? Because it was God's centre.
But it was in ruins. True, for the present, and as looked at from a
human stand-point; but to faith, and from a divine stand-point,
Jerusalem was God's centre for His earthly people. It was, and it
shall be, beyond all question. And not only so, but its dust is
precious to Jehovah; and hence Daniel was in full communion with the
mind of God when he opened his windows toward Jerusalem and prayed. He
had Scripture for what he did, as the reader may see by referring to 2
Chronicles vi. "If they return to thee with all their heart and with
all their soul in the land of their captivity, whither they have
carried them captives, and pray _toward their land_, which Thou gavest
unto their fathers, and _toward the city_ which Thou hast chosen, and
_toward the house_ which I have built for Thy name."
Here was Daniel's warrant. This was what he did, utterly regardless of
human opinions, and utterly regardless, too, of pains and penalties.
He would rather be thrown into the den of lions than surrender the
truth of God; he would rather go to heaven with a good conscience
than remain on earth with a bad one.
And what was the result? Another splendid triumph! "Daniel was taken
up out of the den, and no manner of hurt was found upon him, BECAUSE
HE BELIEVED IN HIS GOD."
Blessed servant! noble witness! Assuredly he was the head on this
occasion, and his enemies the tail. And how? Simply by obedience to
the Word of God. This is what we deem to be of such vast moral
importance for this our day. It is to illustrate and enforce this that
we refer to those brilliant examples of individual faithfulness at a
time when Israel's national glory was in the dust, their unity gone,
and their polity broken up. We cannot but regard it as a fact full of
interest, full of encouragement, full of suggestive power, that in the
darkest days of Israel's history as a nation we have the brightest and
noblest examples of personal faith and devotedness. We earnestly press
this upon the attention of the Christian reader. We consider it
eminently calculated to strengthen and cheer up our hearts in standing
for the truth of God at a moment like the present, when there is so
much to discourage us in the general condition of the professing
church. It is not that we are to look for such speedy, striking, and
splendid results as were realized in those cases to which we have
referred. This is by no means the question. What we have to keep
before our hearts is the fact that, no matter what may be the
condition of the ostensible people of God at any given time, it is
the privilege of the individual man of God to tread the narrow path
and reap the precious fruits of simple obedience to the Word of God
and the precious commandments of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
This, we feel persuaded, is a truth for the day. May we all feel its
holy power. We are in imminent danger of lowering the standard of
personal devotedness because of the general condition. This is a fatal
mistake, yea, it is the positive suggestion of the enemy of Christ and
His cause. If Mordecai, Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego, and Daniel had
acted thus, what would have been the result?
Ah, no, reader; we have ever to bear in mind that our one great
business is, to obey, and leave results with God. It may please Him to
permit His servants to see striking results, or He may see fit to
allow them to wait for that great day that is coming, when there will
be no danger of our being puffed up by seeing any little fruit of our
testimony. Be this as it may, it is our plain and bounden duty to
tread that bright and blessed path indicated for us by the
commandments of our precious and adorable Lord and Saviour Jesus
Christ. May God enable us, by the grace of His Holy Spirit, so to do.
May we cleave to the truth of God with purpose of heart, utterly
regardless of the opinions of our fellow-men who may charge us with
narrowness, bigotry, intolerance, and such like. _We have just to go
on with the Lord!_